Status Quo!

The Lord is the strength of my life of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

This past New Year’s Eve the intriguing term, status quo, seemed destined to describe the seemingly unchangeable outcome of the game between UGA and OSU. Ohio State dominated the game from the middle of the second quarter until the end of the third. In his column Jeff Schultz said, “The defense was being shredded, and the offense was sputtering.” the status quo was becoming reality. Suddenly, with 2:36 left, the team huddled, and a spark was ignited as they realized they still had a chance to change the status quo of this very important game!

The term status quo is defined as the existing state of affairs. On December 31 as we approached midnight, the Georgia Bulldogs opted to change the status quo of the Peach Bowl game and said, “Yes, we can change the outcome of this game” rather than “no, we can’t.” Georgia rallied for a 14 point fourth quarter comeback to stun the Ohio State team. It was precisely as the ball dropped in New York that we watched the winning field goal try for OSU go wide left.

Life can be just like this game. We can fumble around miserably and accept our non productive path, or we can ignite a spark and change the direction of our lives. The status quo of life can be best described by author Jon Gordon who said, “There was a time (as children) when we jumped from a jungle gym and went on roller coaster rides. No goal was unattainable. Then when we grew up, the doubters dissuaded us from going after our dreams. They instilled their insecurities in us, and with so many people saying we can’t and so few saying we can, we let fear enter our lives. We are so afraid of losing what we have that we don’t go after what we want!”

How is the status quo in our lives as we begin this New Year? Just as in this game, some people are very happy with the status quo in their lives, and they would like things to stay just the way they are. Others are wanting more and are working hard to change things in their lives and shake up the status quo. Everyone goes through a time in their lives when it just seems easier to accept things as they are rather than put forth the effort to change them, but where does that get us?

David said, “The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?” Fear is the main thing which prevents us from moving forward and changing the status quo of our lives. David urged us to use our strength in God to conquer this fear.

Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills football player who collapsed on the field last Monday night is making a remarkable recovery. When asked at an earlier time about his career and its status quo, he said, “My faith is in God. So whatever He has planned for me, that’ll be it.” These are statements of faith which negate fear and demonstrate a mindset of never giving up. The status quo can be changed.

Sometimes faith is about obeying God in our lives and setting out on the journey He calls us to take even though the answers we seek might be a little murky at the beginning. We have to hold on to the assurance of things hoped for and cling to the conviction of things unseen.

Living a life of faith means overcoming fear and adopting a play to win mindset. One that says even if we fail, we won’t give up and let our dreams die. Success isn’t automatically given to any of us, it is pursued with all the energy and sweat we can muster. Obstacles and struggles are part of life, and they make us appreciate success. Obstacles were meant to be overcome. Fear was mean to be conquered. Success was meant to be achieved. These are part of life, and those who succeed are those who change the status quo and refuse to give up till the game is over! Go Dawgs!